View on Amsterdam with Montelbaanstoren

Hendrik Kranenburg lived and worked in Amsterdam before settling in Laren in 1943. He did his studies at the Rijksacademie in Amsterdam under the guidance of J.H. Jurres and W.H. van de Berg. He acquired a prize for portrait painting and a grant from the Davidsfonds (Arti and Amicitiae in Amsterdam).

Kranenburg drew (pen and pastel), etched and lithographed. But he became best known for his oil paintings, especially of cityscapes.

Often they were also vast landscapes, monumental with a rich color palette. The paint was applied thickly to the canvas with coarse pen strokes, which often created more than a one-dimensional impression. His style was very similar to the painter W.G.F. Jansen, whom he greatly admired.

The large clouds above the landscape or cityscape are a feast for the eyes and also betray the influence of the Hague School. He was a possessed painter who had a large output. He identified himself with the object he was working on.

In addition, Kranenburg was not only a gifted painter but also had great qualities as a pianist. Music inspired his painting. In 1964, Kranenburg moved to Bergen op Zoom and died on January 31, 1997.